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QUESTIONS
AND
ANSWERS Performing an MR Scan
IN MRI What are the steps a technologist goes
through to perform an MRI scan?

1. Patient preparation and screening. The MR scanning sequence begins by screening the patient
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for metallic foreign bodies and devices such as pacemakers that may represent a contraindication to
Complete List of Questions imaging. The patient's important health conditions, including allergies, are also reviewed. Informed
consent is obtained for the procedure including the administration of gadolinium, if ordered. The
…Magnets & Scanners technologist fully explains what the scanning procedure entails and answers questions. Thus prepared
…The NMR Phenomenon for the study, the patient is led into the scanner room for the scan itself.

…Pulse Sequences (Basic) 2. Patient positioning. The patient is placed on the table, usually in the
supine position. Receiver imaging coils are arranged around the body part of
…Making an Image interest (head, chest, knee, etc.) If EKG or respiratory gating is required,
then these devices are attached at this time. A key anatomic structure such
…K-space & Rapid Imaging
as the bridge of the nose or umbilicus is identified as a landmark using laser
…Paramagnetic Contrast guidance, and this is correlated with table position by pressing a button on the
gantry.
…Cardiovascular and MRA

…Functional Imaging 3. Protocol selection. Most MR sites have developed

an extensive list of imaging protocols for various
…MR Artifacts
diseases and clinical scenarios. Each protocol typically
…Coming Soon! contains a half dozen or so pulse sequences oriented
in different planes and with different parameter
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weightings. For example, for cranial imaging there might
What's New be protocols called "Routine Adult Brain", "Routine
Infant Brain", "Epilepsy Brain", "MR Angiogram Circle
Open Forum/Discussion of W illis", and a dozen others. The technologist simply
calls up the desired protocol from the library to begin
scanning. Alternatively, generic sequences are also
present in the scanner library that can be modified for
Main protocol page for a GE MRI scanner. specialized views or techniques.
(Click to enlarge)

4. Localizer scans. A set of three-plane,

low-resolution, large field-of view localizers are first
obtained, equivalent to "scout views" in CT. These
localizer images will be used for plotting slices in
step 6.

5. Calibration scans for parallel imaging. If

parallel imaging is to be performed, a coil
sensitivity calibration scan may also be required.
This blurry image is not used for diagnosis but is
Localizer with slices plotted
often displayed as a separate series.

6. Position slices and saturation bands. At this point the exact positions and angulation of slices will
be graphically specified. Protocol parameters such as field-of-view, directions of phase- and frequency-
encoding, slice thickness, can be modified at this point so they are optimized for the particular patient's
anatomy. If saturation bands are required, these are also graphically positioned at this time. Once the
slices and bands have been specified and parameters tweaked, the "Scan" button is pushed and the
image acquisition process finally begins.

7. Automatic prescan. Scanning begins, but not immediately. The scanner first goes through a brief
(10-20 sec) calibration procedure known as prescan. Prescan consists of 6 steps: quick higher-order
shimming, coil tuning/matching, center frequency calibration, transmitter gain adjustment, receiver gain
adjustment, and dummy cycle stimulation. Although a fully automated process, manual adjustments are
also sometimes needed. These prescan steps are described more completely in subsequent Q&A's.

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MR scanning - Questions and Answers in MRI http://mri-q.com/what-are-the-steps.html

8. Acquire images. Finally, the desired pulse sequence is run and the images are produced. Hooray!
Steps 6 through 8 are then repeated until all sequences in the protocol have been run.

9. Post-processing. Additional post-processing is required for a number of advanced sequences,

including MR angiography, vascular and CSF flow studies, cardiac imaging, diffusion tensor imaging,
functional MRI, and spectroscopy. This can be done on the main scanner console or on a separate
workstation.

10. Data archiving. The images and processed data are stored on a PACS or other archival system.
Raw data is often discarded.
Advanced Discussion (show/hide)»

References
Prince M. Learnmri.org, an illustrated workbook. (Contains pdfs of various protocols and steps for
technologists, all based on a GE MR interface).

Related Questions
What training or certification do you need to become an MRI technologist?

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